That night, Li Shu indeed woke up.
Although he was conscious, his body was still weak and needed further rest.
When Li Shu saw Li Man'er, he was confused and perplexed, his mind still hazy.
Before he could ask anything, a woman rushed to his side and cried, "Marquis, you're finally awake, you're finally awake."
Li Shu became even more bewildered and asked his daughter, "Who is she?"
"Father, this is a servant of the Xiao family, named Jiao Niang. She has been taking care of you while you were unconscious," Li Man'er coughed slightly before adding, "taking personal care of you."
Li Shu's face turned as dark as ink, embarrassed.
But that was all after he had fainted; he didn't know and couldn't stop it.
"Stop crying, you're giving me a headache." Perhaps due to just waking up, Li Shu's voice was a little hoarse and sounded very tired.
Li Man'er simply said, "Jiao Niang, go and fetch some warm water for Father." Her tone was stern, and Jiao Niang dared not disobey. She wiped her tears and hurried off.
The Marquis was awake, and her good days would soon begin.
Li Shu frowned, "Why are you here? And what's going on with that Jiao Niang?"
"The Xiao family is unreliable. The doctor they hired refused to treat you. If I hadn't come, I don't know when Father would have woken up."
"Who sent you the message, and who protected you on your journey?"
The capital and Mobei were hundreds of miles apart, and the round trip was fraught with dangers. Li Shu thought that without protection, Li Man'er would likely not have been able to come to Mobei alone.
"It was Li Wenchang who took people back to deliver the message. According to him, he encountered many obstacles on the way, losing several brothers, before he successfully returned to the capital and found me. He was afraid the Xiao family would not treat you diligently, so he returned to the capital to seek help."
Li Shu detected something amiss and immediately asked, "Is something wrong? Or did you discover something?"
"Father, what do you think of Li Wenchang?"
Li Shu couldn't stand her all-knowing demeanor and sternly said, "He has followed me for many years. He is my most trusted right-hand man. While he may not have the talent of a commander, he is loyal."
"Hmph," Li Man'er scoffed repeatedly. "The loyal Vice General Li you speak of, pretended to escort me to Mobei, but halfway through, he arranged for wolves and bandits to attack us."
"Impossible," Li Shu exclaimed, agitated. "Nonsense! How can wolves be controlled by humans? You're saying he colluded with bandits? That's slander."
Li Man'er couldn't stand Li Shu's stubbornness. "Father knows there's no one in this world who can control beasts. Besides, there are many wolves in the Gobi Desert, and they're starving this season, their eyes already green. It's not difficult to guide them to attack people. I personally witnessed Li Wenchang colluding with the barbarians. If not for some accidents that day, my uncle and I would have faced the wolves first and then the bandits. It's questionable whether we uncle and nephew could have survived."
"Third Uncle is here too?" Although Li Shu was angry, his body was still very weak, and he didn't have the energy to scold Li Man'er. He said, "Have your Third Uncle and Li Wenchang come to see me. I want to see if Li Wenchang has really colluded with the barbarians."
Li Man'er was too lazy to talk to this foolish man. She immediately said, "Li Wenchang has already been sent to hell by me. If I didn't kill him, he would have killed me. Also, the Xiao family has already placed us, father and daughter, under house arrest. The tens of thousands of troops you brought have also been divided into four teams by the Xiao family and stationed in different locations. Instead of suspecting your daughter's intentions, Father might as well think about the Xiao family's purpose, and how to secure a foothold here." She was extremely angry and, after speaking, she flung her sleeves and left the inner room, sitting on a chair and gritting her teeth.
Foolish creature, no wonder he allowed his wife and legitimate daughter to be harmed.
Jiao Niang took the opportunity to enter the room to attend to Li Shu. Everything was going well, but for some reason, Li Shu suddenly roared, "Get out, get out!"
Then, there was a crashing sound from the inner room. The teapot and teacups Jiao Niang had brought in shattered all over the floor. She wiped her tears and left the room, calling for an old woman to clean up the mess inside.
Liu Ya looked relieved and thought to herself that this vixen must have done something to anger the Marquis, which was why she was driven out.
However, the Marquis was truly unable to see the situation clearly. If it weren't for the eldest daughter saving him, his life would have been forfeit long ago.
"Liu Ya, go and inquire about the physician Feng, with whom I made a bet. Why hasn't he come yet? We agreed that the Marquis would wake up within seven days, and it's only the fifth day, yet he has woken up. He should come with gifts to pay homage."
Liu Ya said, "Yes, miss, I'll go and ask now."
That old ghost named Feng was lying in Li Man'er's spatial dimension. The reason Li Man'er asked Liu Ya to inquire was merely to use this opportunity to enrage Xiao Qiniang and add salt to her wounds.
People only made mistakes when they lost their reason, and then she would have a chance to find out what the Xiao family was plotting.
Liu Ya didn't know that the two gatekeepers at the door were members of the Ninth Prince's faction. When she went out, she was ready for a quarrel, with her hands on her hips, as if ready to fight at any moment.
"Where is that physician Feng? Bring him here."
The two ignored her, looking straight ahead, treating Liu Ya as if she were air.
Liu Ya became even angrier. "Who are you people? Are you deaf? I said, call that Feng. What, you know you lost, so you're acting like a turtle hiding in its shell? If you don't want to pay homage, just say so. With that hideous appearance of his, our young lady finds him unsightly and unnatural."
The two were so annoyed by her that they had to send someone to inform Xiao Qiniang.
Xiao Qiniang received the news of Li Shu's awakening immediately. Hearing that Li Man'er wanted Feng Jue to pay homage, she couldn't help but wonder if her previous assumptions were wrong. If Feng Jue's disappearance was related to Li Man'er, she wouldn't be so blatant in asking for Feng Jue. However, she couldn't rule out the possibility that Li Man'er was trying to mislead her.
"Tell her the truth..."
Just as the guard was about to leave, Xiao Qiniang suddenly changed her mind. "Say that he left on his own, his whereabouts are uncertain, and we don't know when he'll be back."
She hadn't expected Li Man'er to actually have some skills and manage to save Li Shu.
"Yes," the guard turned and left, relaying Xiao Qiniang's words to Liu Ya.
Liu Ya was so angry she almost laughed. "Can you people be any more shameless? This person's disappearance is so timely. He didn't disappear earlier or later, but precisely at this moment."
The guard said nothing, as if willing to endure any scolding. Liu Ya found it tedious and turned back into the room, informing Li Man'er of Feng Jue's disappearance.